Employment and Training Administration – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and its implementing regulations, notice is hereby given to announce the final public meeting of the Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion on Thursday, May 10, 2018. The Task Force is a FACA committee established by Presidential Executive Order that is charged with identifying strategies and proposals to promote and expand apprenticeships, especially in sectors where apprenticeship programs are insufficient. The Task Force is solely advisory in nature, and will consider reports, comments, research, evidence, and existing practices as appropriate to develop recommendations for inclusion in its final report to the President. To achieve its mission, the Task Force will convene its final meeting in person.

The Department of Labor (DOL), Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is soliciting comments concerning a proposed extension for the authority to conduct the information collection request (ICR) titled, ``O*NET Data Collection Program'' (expires September 30, 2018). This comment request is part of continuing Departmental efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA).

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the Department of Labor (Department or DOL) is issuing this Notice to announce the annual update to the allowable charges that employers seeking H-2A workers in occupations other than range herding may charge their workers when the employer provides three meals a day and the maximum travel subsistence meal reimbursement that a worker with receipts may claim under the H-2A and H-2B programs. The Notice also includes a reminder regarding employers' obligations with respect to overnight lodging costs as part of required subsistence.

Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and its implementing regulations, notice is hereby given to announce the fourth public meeting of the Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion on Tuesday, April 10, 2018. The Task Force is a FACA committee established by Presidential Executive Order that is charged with identifying strategies and proposals to promote and expand apprenticeships, especially in sectors where apprenticeship programs are insufficient. The Task Force is solely advisory in nature, and will consider reports, comments, research, evidence, and existing practices as appropriate to develop recommendations for inclusion in its final report to the President. To achieve its mission, the Task Force will convene one additional in-person meeting on Thursday, May 10, 2018.

The Department of Labor (DOL or Department), ETA, Office of Job Corps, is issuing a Final Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) regarding the proposed rehabilitation or replacement of buildings at the Gulfport Job Corps Center (JCC) in Gulfport, Mississippi.

The Department of Labor (DOL), Employment and Training Administration is soliciting comments concerning a proposed extension for the authority to conduct the Information Collection Request (ICR) titled, ``Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training Grant Program Reporting Requirements.'' This comment request is part of continuing Departmental efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA).

This notice announces a change in benefit payment status under the EB program for the Virgin Islands. The following change has occurred since the publication of the last notice regarding the Virgin Islands' EB status: The Virgin Islands' 13-week insured unemployment rate (IUR) for the week ending December 02, 2017 was 5.68 percent which exceeds 120 percent of the corresponding rate in the prior year. This caused Virgin Islands to be triggered ``on'' to an EB period that began December 17, 2017. The State will remain in an EB period for a minimum of 13 weeks. The trigger notice covering state eligibility for the EB program can be found at: https://oui.doleta.gov/unemploy/claims_arch.asp.

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the Department of Labor (Department) is issuing this notice to announce to employers and other interested stakeholders about a process change to better assure fairness regarding the issuance of H-2B temporary labor certifications due to the unprecedented volume of applications received on January 1, 2018.

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the Department of Labor (Department) published a notice in the Federal Register on December 22, 2017, announcing the 2018 Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) for the employment of temporary or seasonal nonimmigrant foreign workers (H-2A workers) to perform herding or production of livestock on the range. That notice contained two different figures as the 2018 AEWR, one correct ($1,584.22/month) and the other incorrect. This notice corrects the incorrect figure.

Section 224(b) of the Trade Act of 1974 (``Trade Act'') requires the United States Department of Labor (``Department'') to publish in the Federal Register a summary of each report that it submits to the President under section 224(a) of the Trade Act. Set forth below is a summary of the report that the Department submitted to the President on December 19, 2017, on investigation No. TA-201-76, Large Residential Washers. The Department conducted the investigation under section 224(a) following notification by the International Trade Commission (``Commission''), as required by section 202(a)(3) of the Trade Act that a petition was filed alleging that LRWs are being imported into the United States in such increased quantities as to be a substantial cause of serious injury, or threat thereof, to the domestic industry producing an article like or directly competitive with the imported article.

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the Department of Labor (Department) is issuing this notice to announce the 2018 Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) for the employment of temporary or seasonal nonimmigrant foreign workers (H-2A workers) to perform herding or production of livestock on the range. AEWRs are the minimum wage rates the Department has determined must be offered and paid by employers to H-2A workers and workers in corresponding employment so that the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers will not be adversely affected. In this notice, the Department announces the annual update of the AEWR for workers engaged in the herding or production of livestock on the range, as required by the methodology established in the Temporary Agricultural Employment of H-2A Foreign Workers in the Herding or Production of Livestock on the Range in the United States, 80 FR 62958, 63067-63068 (Oct. 16, 2015); 20 CFR 655.211.

The Employment and Training Administration (ETA) of the Department of Labor (Department) is issuing this notice to announce the 2018 Adverse Effect Wage Rates (AEWRs) for the employment of temporary or seasonal nonimmigrant foreign workers (H-2A workers) to perform agricultural labor or services other than the herding or production of livestock on the range. AEWRs are the minimum wage rates the Department has determined must be offered and paid by employers to H-2A workers and workers in corresponding employment for a particular occupation and area so that the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers will not be adversely affected. In this notice, the Department announces the annual update of the AEWRs.

Pursuant to Section 308 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014 (WIOA), which amends section 15 of the Wagner-Peyser Act of 1933, notice is hereby given that the WIAC will meet January 11, 2018, at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST). The meeting will take place virtually at https:// meet617368056.adobeconnect.com/wiac/ or call 1-800-201-5203 and use conference code 333372. The WIAC was established in accordance with provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), as amended and will act in accordance with the applicable provisions of FACA and its implementing regulation. The meeting will be open to the public.

The Department of Labor (DOL or Department), ETA, Office of Job Corps, is issuing a draft Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) regarding the proposed rehabilitation or replacement of buildings at the Gulfport Job Corps Center (JCC) in Gulfport, Mississippi.

Sections 3302(c)(2)(A) and 3302(d)(3) of the FUTA provide that employers in a State that has an outstanding balance of advances under Title XII of the Social Security Act at the beginning of January 1 of two or more consecutive years are subject to a reduction in credits otherwise available against the FUTA tax for the calendar year in which the most recent such January 1 occurs, if a balance of advances remains at the beginning of November 10 of that year. Further, section 3302(c)(2)(C) of FUTA provides for an additional credit reduction for a year if a State has outstanding advances on five or more consecutive January firsts and has a balance at the beginning of November 10 for such years. Section 3302(c)(2)(C) also provides for waiver of this additional credit reduction and substitution of the credit reduction provided in section 3302(c)(2)(B) if a state meets certain conditions. California and Virgin Islands were potentially liable for the additional credit reduction and applied for a waiver of the 2017 additional credit reduction under section 3302 (c)(2)(C) of FUTA. It has been determined that each one met all of the criteria of that section necessary to qualify for the waiver of the additional credit reduction. Further, the additional credit reduction of section 3302(c)(2)(B) is zero for California and Virgin Islands for 2017. Therefore, employers in California and Virgin Islands will have no additional credit reduction applied for calendar year 2017. As a result of having passed eight consecutive January 1's with an outstanding Title XII advances and not having repaid the balance as of November 10, 2017, both California and Virgin Islands are subject to a FUTA credit reduction of 2.1 percent.

The Department of Labor (DOL), Employment and Training Administration is soliciting comments concerning a proposed extension for the authority to conduct the information collection request (ICR) titled, ``Workforce Flexibility (Workflex) Plan Submission and Reporting Requirements.'' This comment request is part of continuing Departmental efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA).

The Secretary of Labor signed the annual certifications under the Federal Unemployment Tax Act, 26 U.S.C. 3301 et seq., thereby enabling employers who make contributions to state unemployment funds to obtain certain credits against their liability for the federal unemployment tax. By letter, the certifications were transmitted to the Secretary of the Treasury. The letter and certifications are printed below.

The Department of Labor is publishing this notice to announce the establishment of a Charter for the Task Force on Apprenticeship Expansion (hereinafter ``the Task Force'' or ``the panel''), a non- discretionary federal advisory committee authorized pursuant to section 8 of Executive Order 13801, entitled ``Expanding Apprenticeships in America'' (hereinafter ``the Executive Order''), which was issued on June 15, 2017 (82 FR 28229) and which directed the Secretary of Labor to establish and chair such a panel in the Department of Labor and to provide notice, pursuant to section 10 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), of the initial public meeting of the Task Force to be held on November 13, 2017.

The Department of Labor (DOL), Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is soliciting comments concerning the following, proposed changes to the information collection request (ICR) titled, ``Guam Military Base Realignment Contractor Recruitment Standards.'' This comment request is part of continuing Departmental efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA).